


fine lines

by leonorawrites



Category: SKAM (Norway)
Genre: Bisexual Female Character, Eating Disorders, F/F, Friends to Lovers, Lesbian Character, Travel, Wanderlust
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-10
Updated: 2018-08-10
Packaged: 2019-06-25 14:11:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,274
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15642360
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/leonorawrites/pseuds/leonorawrites
Summary: “Pay attention,” Noora whispers, fondly shaking her head at Eva.“I totally am.”Noora rolls her eyes. “No, you’re looking at 25 places to see before you die,” she reads in English. She’s leaning in to Eva’s side now, so she can read the title on the screen. It’s a little distracting, the way her hair smells like roses and her arm is warm against Eva’s —“You should come with me.”“What to,” Noora looks at the article again, “Monaco?” she ask incredulously.“Anywhere.”or, Eva and Noora go on interrail. Adventures, deep conversations and realisations happen along the way.





	fine lines

**Author's Note:**

> written for the reverse big bang challenge.  
> — this fic was inspired by margot’s wonderful artwork, it will be featured in chapter two or you can view it on tumblr. she’s my absolute favourite artist in the SKAM fandom and she’s also just one of the sweetest persons i know, so you should definitely go tell her how good her art is.  
> — also, thank you to my best friends fanni and viola for being sweet and encouraging whenever i complained about this fic in our gc, and for always knowing exactly what to say to me.  
> — this is unbeta’ed so there will probably be a few mistakes. also, this fic is lowkey bad so i’m just really glad that Margot had so many other actually amazing writers writing for her art.

**Eva**  
Eva has never really been good at school, or liked it much for that matter. She likes learning, that’s not it, and these days she’s constantly surrounded by Sana, Chris, Vilde and Noora — she still has Isak and Jonas, too — so it’s not that she doesn't’ have any friends, either.

It’s just —

They’re a little over halfway through their second year, and she is behind on at least two assignments and have three more coming up. It’s monday so she knows she has to sit through two hours of math class with that one teacher who just seems to hate her for no reason, and she stayed up so late last night, actually doing homework, that she’s dependant on the cheap cafeteria coffee to make it through her morning classes.

She’s exhausted.

The worst part, though, is it’s not like it’s just one bad day or one bad week. This is what it’s always like.

It’s a lot of pressure, and sure there are days when she’ not sure if she can’t handle it all. That’s when she has the girls though, she knows that she can lean on them. Sana will help her study when she really needs it. Noora, too, and remind her that she’s a lot smarter than people give her credit for. When she needs a break from it all, Vilde and Chris will always be there to make her laugh.

So yes, as long as she’s got them she can handle the pressure of school. She can handle doing homework until two in the morning, teachers reprimanding her, and turning assignments in that she knows she’s going to fail.

She just really wishes she didn’t have to.

She’s running late today, the hallways cleared of students, as she tries making her way up the stairs without spilling any of the hot coffee in her hand. She tries to enter the classroom without disturbing the class, quietly whispering her apologies to the teacher before sitting down in the first open seat.

This. It’s her routine, her everyday.

She finds herself daydreaming about getting away, leaving it all behind, more often than not. In the middle of class, on the tram home — even when she’s hanging out with the girls — she catches herself lost in thought.

_Dreaming._

She wants to travel the world. She wants to climb the snow covered mountains, to swim in turquoise waters on sandy beaches, to dance under waterfalls and to go on adventures. If only she could see as many countries and as many cities as possible. It’s as if there’s something pulling inside of her, like she just can’t wait to get away.

Of course, that’s when reality gets in the way.

As much as she wants to she isn’t actually the type of person who could just up and leave up and go, leaving it all behind and throwing her academic career away in the process. Besides, that’s what summer holidays and gap years are for, isn’t it? A change for all the people, as tired of their lives as she is, to get away.

That’s what she’ll do.

She’ll have to hold on to her dream and get through this school year so she can go travelling in the summer.

 

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

 

It’s the final period of the day and they’re is in Spanish class. Noora sitting next to her, idly scribbling in her notebook. Her notes are alway neatly handwritten and perfectly organised ⎯ Unlike Eva’s, that primarily consist of a bunch of half-written Word documents, saved to the desktop with titles created by smashing the keyboard.

Though Eva isn’t taking notes right now, or even paying attention to their teacher. She’s mindlessly scrolling through pages, images on images of white beach and palm tree paradise, a couple kissing under the Eiffel Tower, buildings in vibrant colours, articles on articles about travelling and all the places to see—

She feels the nudge of an elbow against her rib.

Eva frowns, turning to Noora. “What?” she mouths. Noora raises her eyebrows, pointedly nodding her head at their teacher. For a second Eva thinks the teacher must have called on her without her realising or something. She hasn’t. She’s still going on about some grammar rule that Eva will never remember.

“Pay attention,” Noora whispers, fondly shaking her head at Eva.

“I totally am.”

Noora rolls her eyes. “No, you’re looking at 25 places to see before you die,” she reads in English. She’s leaning in to Eva’s side now, so she can read the title on the screen. It’s a little distracting, the way her hair smells like roses and her arm is warm against Eva’s —

“You should come with me."

“What to,” Noora looks at the article again, “Monaco?” she ask incredulously.

“Anywhere.”

Noora looks at her then like she’s searching for something in Eva’s face. “You know, during the summer vacation,” she starts, trying to rationalize her words. “I was thinking of going travelling then. You could come with.”

“Eva and Noora, if you’re going to keep disrupting class you might as well leave,” the shrill voice of their teacher cuts through.

“I’m sorry. We’re done,” Noora apologises, and Eva knows not to push it.

 

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

 

Noora crawls through her window that night. The same way she always does.

“Did you mean it?” she asks, taking her jacket off and throwing it over the back of Eva’s desk chair. “When you asked me to go travelling with you?”

She sits down on the bed next to where Eva is lying.

“Of course,” Eva says. She doesn’t want to say that she’s been stuck on the idea all day. Really, she had tried not getting her hopes up. It’s just that it really would be perfect.

“Okay.” Eva sits up

“Okay?”

“Yes,” Noora says, drawing out the word. “I want to go.”

Eva squeals with excitement. She reaches for Noora then, pulling her close in to a hug and Noora lets her, falling against her chest, softly laughing.

“So,” Eva says, getting up to get her laptop from her desk. She throws herself back on the bed again, scooting back a bit, and opening the laptop. “Where do we want to go?”

Noora leans back against the pillows, making herself comfortable against Eva’s shoulder. “Did you have anything planned when you asked me to go travelling with you?”

Eva shakes her head.

“I just want to travel. See the world,” she says, hoping Noora understands — understands that it’s not about going any one place as much as it’s just about going anywhere.

Noora seems to think for a bit. “Well can we narrow it down to somewhere in Europe at least? I don’t think I can afford to actually cross any oceans,” she says, taking the laptop from Eva. She opens up google, first typing in plane tickets then plane tickets europe.

Eva nods. Yes, that makes sense. They might both have turned 18 by the time they go on summer vacation, but it is still their first time travelling by themselves, if you don’t count Noora living in Madrid that is and that’s just —

“Maybe you can show me around Spain?”

“Well —to me— Madrid isn’t really an adventure, since I lived there for a year, you know.”

“We could start in Madrid then? Go somewhere else afterwards. Somewhere neither of us have been,”

Noora hums, thinking it over. “Have you heard of interrail?” she asks then, typing it in the search bar and handing the laptop to Eva once the site has loaded. Eva scrolls for a bit, sees the many possible train routes all through Europe displayed on the site. The adventures it would allow.

“Noora, this is perfect.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah,” Eva nods. “Should we ask the other girls if they want to come with?” It’s funny, the thought had barely crossed her mind before the words were out of her mouth. Almost like a reflex. Because even though Eva and Noora spends a lot of time together without the Sana, Vilde and Chris — and they probably spend a lot of time without Eva and Noora — it just seems like this, going travelling, somehow is something they should include them in.

Should.

Because all day the thought of going travelling with Noora — just Noora — has been stuck in Eva’s head, and now she’s not sure she wants to let it go.

“We can,” Noora says, “But I wouldn’t mind if it was just us.”

Her words makes something resembling butterflies flutter in Eva’s stomach. They’re just friends and Eva knows this. It’s just sometimes Noora says something just like that, or touches her just like so and Eva will forget for a minute. She takes a deep breath, compelling the butterflies to settle before Noora notices anything — notices how red her face must be, how she stopped breathing for a split second.

Just friends, she repeats it.

“We can always just ask them,” Eva says. “It won’t hurt to just ask.”

 

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

 

> **Eva**  
>  Noora and I were talking about going on interrail this summer.  
>  Anyone who’s up for it??
> 
> **Noora**  
>  Yeeess
> 
> **Vilde**  
>  That sounds so fun girls! My summer is unfortunately already booked so i won’t have time. I hope you have a good trip
> 
> **Sana**  
>  My family and I will be in Morocco all summer, sorry. Good trip!
> 
> **Chris**  
>  I’m going to Gran Canaria ladiees!! Going to be sipping piña coladas by the pool all summer
> 
> **Eva**  
>  Looks like it’s just us, Noora!

 

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

 

 **Noora**  
A few days later and Noora is in the kitchen with Eskild, cooking.

It’s supposed to be a sort of family dinner for the flatshare, an initiative to get Eskild and Linn to actually eat something other than frozen pizza. Noora had suggested it, hoping that they could all cook together but she’s the only one actually doing any cooking right now.

Linn, is in her bed sleeping at always and Noora counts her blessed if they can just convince her to eat anything. Eskild, to his credit, actually started out trying to help but ended up mostly just snacking on the veggies and getting in the way, so when Noora for the third time had told him to move he’d suggested that he’d just set the table.

Noora stirs the vegetables once more, happy with how it looks she adds the tomato sauce to the pot and turns the heat down to let it simmer.

She’s spent the last 20 minutes telling him about the trip with Eva. The truth is, she had been a bit hesitant at first but the more they actually talked about the trip, about the places they wanted to go, the more excited she’d been about the whole thing.

They still haven’t agreed on where exactly they’re going. So far the plan is to fly to Madrid, where Noora can show Eva around, and then taking the train from there, seeing as much and as many cities as they can on their way back — which, reminds her that they still need to buy the plane tickets there, and she needs to check the expiration date on her passport before she does, possible get it renewed.

She tells Eskild as much, because at this point she’s really just thinking out loud. He doesn’t immediately say anything. She looks at him then, leaning back against the counter. He’s sitting quietly at the table, his mouth pursed and eyebrows raised, the way he does when he wants to say something but isn’t sure if he should say it.

“What?” Noora sighs.

“Are you sure this trip is a good idea?”

Noora frowns. “ _Yes_ , Eskild,” she stresses the word. She’s not sure how much of what she’s been saying that he must not have listed to, to reach that conclusion. “Why wouldn’t it be?”

“Because you’re in love with Eva.”

He says it so simply, like it’s just another fact; the sky is blue, the grass is green and Noora is in love with Eva. There’s nothing simple about what Noora feels for Eva, not in that way at least. She hasn’t really worked it out what it is, but it definitely isn’t in love.

She knows better than that.

“I’m not in love with Eva.”

“Fine,” he says. “Because you have feelings for Eva, then.”

They had talked about it, her and Eskild, one late night when neither of them could really seem to fall asleep. They had shared a bed often enough that it wasn’t weird that she’d just crawl into his bed whenever she couldn’t sleep. Sometimes he’d just hold her and go back to sleep, other times they’d stay up all night talking.

It was one of those nights that she’d whispered it into the darkness. That she thinks she might like Eva.

It’s easier to admit it at night, when you’re already whispering secrets than when you’re standing in your kitchen, broad daylight, making dinner. “Who knows, maybe this trip is when I finally get over her.”

“Oh yeah. I’m sure,” he humours her. “Being around someone you like 24/7 will definitely do that.”

“Please, don’t try to talk me out if it.” Her voice sounds pleading even to her own ears.

Eskild gets up then, his face falling like he knows not to joke anymore. He wraps his arms around her shoulders, pulling her into a hug. “Okay. If you’re sure, then I won’t.”

She rolls her eyes, but lets him drag her close to his chest. Just for a second.

 

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

  
Before Noora knows it they’re a week into the summer vacation, and it’s the day before they leave. The past month has disappeared in endless studying but she thankfully did well on their end of term exams - Eva, too. She’s just glad to have that and their second year out of the world.

It almost feels like the end of a chapter, in a way, and like this trip is the beginning of a new one.

The trip is not that well planned if she’s honest. They have their plane tickets, the interrail ticket and a booking for the hostel in Madrid, but that’s it. Eva had insisted that they didn’t plan it too much, because apparently that would ruin the fun and the adventure of it all. She would have prefered a better plan, to know what was going to happen.

Noora had rolled her eyes then and tried to calm her anxiety. It would be fine.

Now, it’s the night before they leave and Noora is packing the last of her things. They’re flying early tomorrow morning so she won’t have time to do it then. Even if she did, it’s probably best not to leave it to the last minute.

She has everything spread out in stacks on her bed. Her clothes split into a pile for tops and one for bottoms, her toiletries in one, and everything else in the last pile. Then she has a tote bag for all the small things and the things she will need on the plane; headphones, phone charger, a book and snacks. She’ll have to remember to buy water after security at the airport.

She almost has everything carefully packed in her backpack when Eskild knocks on the door, not waiting for an answer before he barges in, throwing himself on the bed. “I can’t believe you’re leaving Linn and I,” he wails.

“Eskild,” Noora whines when he lies on top of the one pile of clothes she’s yet to pack. He moves away from it with a guilty grimace, and Noora sets to re-folding everything. “I’m only going to be gone for like a month.”

“So, are you all ready?” he asks.When Noora nods he continues, “I was just thinking⎯”

“Eskild,” she warns, knowing where he’s going with it.

“I know, I know. I won’t try and talk you out of it,” he says, holding up his hands in defense. “I’ve changed my mind about it, anyways. I think this trip will be good for you. A chance for you to be spontaneous, who knows, maybe even act on your feelings for Eva.”

“You want me to act on my feelings for a straight girl?”

“No, but who knows, she might not be straight at all.” Noora rolls her eyes, she doesn’t even want to entertain the thought. “Will you just let me pack already?”

“Yes, just ⎯” he sits up straight this time. A little more serious. “Are you going to be okay going back to Madrid?”

Noora sighs, sitting back on her heels. She really just wants to tell him that she’ll be fine and he shouldn’t worry, but she thinks she might owe him a serious answer this time. After all he was there when she got back from Madrid and needed somewhere to stay in Oslo.

“You were a little bit of a mess when I met you and you had just gotten back.”

She looks up at him. “I know.”

“A very cute mess though,” he continues, and Noora can’t help but smile. It’s such a typical Eskild thing to say.

“I think It’ll be okay,” she says earnestly. She closes her backpack, everything finally packed. Moves it so it’s leaning against the bed.

“Promise me you’ll call if it isn’t,” he says, getting up when Noora does the same.

Noora smiles. “Eskild, I promise.”

He leaves her room then. “I’m still following you to the station in the morning,” he yells from somewhere in the hallway.

 

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

 

> **Eva**  
>  We’re leaving today!!!!
> 
> **Eva**  
>  Also, can you bring shampoo enough for both of us?
> 
> **Noora**  
>  Yes! See you soon

 

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

 

It’s early in the morning. Eskild, as promised, takes the tram with Noora to the Central Station and stays with her as they wait for Eva to show up. It doesn’t take long before they spot her in the crowd, her mamma with her. Her hair is in a messy bun and she’s in denim shorts and a cozy sweater, her backpack looking big and heavy.

Noora doesn’t blame her for looking a little bit like she just woke up. It’s cute.

Eva starts smiling as soon as she spots Noora and Eskild, waving at them. She turns to her mamma then, saying goodbye. Noora can’t hear what they’re saying but her mamma puts her hand on Eva’s cheek and Eva nods, gives her a hug and turns to Noora and Eskild.

She runs to them, waddling a bit with the weight of her backpack. “Eskild,” she exclaims, wrapping her arms around his neck. Her laughter is bubbling with excitement, and it’s infectious, making both Noora and Eskild smile.

She lets go of Eskild then and wraps her arm under Noora’s, dragging her along. “Come on, we have to catch the train,” she says.

“Take care of yourself you two,” Eskild says when they’re standing on the platform. He’s holding on to Noora’s shoulders theatrically. Even with the sense of drama in his voice Noora knows that he actually means it, so she’s sincere when she promises him that they will. She hugs him a final time, as close as she can, before following Eva on the train.

They find a spot with four open seats, sitting down in the two seats next to each other and using those across from them for their backpacks. Outside the window Eskild stays on the platform, waving them goodbye as the train leaves.

It’s less than half an hour train ride to the airport but they still make themself comfortable. Eva takes out her headphones, handing the left one to Noora.

“Are you ready?” she asks, and Noora can’t help but laugh. With Eva, she always is.

**Author's Note:**

> next few chapters should be up sometime today. i’m on tumblr @scorpiopeaches


End file.
